I told her that I wasn't going to let her do it, that I was
strong and liked to cook; and I stammered and blundered when I tried to
hint that I liked cooking for her. She looked very dense at this and
insisted that I should build the fire, and show her where the things
were; and when I had done so she pinned back her skirts and went about
the work in a way that threw me into a high fever.
"You may bring the new milk," said she, "and by that time I'll have a
fine breakfast for you."
When the milk was brought, breakfast was still a little behindhand, but
she would not let me help. Anyhow, I felt in spite of my talk that I
wanted to do some other sort of service for her: I wanted to show off,
to prove myself a protector, to fight for her, to knock down or drive
off her foes and mine; and as I saw the light smoke curling up through
the tree-tops I asked myself where those men were who had made their way
past us in such a dark and secret sort of way and with so much bad talk
back there in the middle of the night. I wondered if they had camped
where they could see the smoke of our fire, or hear our voices or the
other sounds we made.
I almost wished that they might. I had now in a dim, determined,
stubborn way claimed this girl in my heart for my own; and I felt
without really thinking of it, that I could best foreclose my lien by
defeating all comers before I dragged her yielding to my cave. It is the
way of all male animals--except spiders, perhaps, and bees--and a male
animal was all that I was that morning.
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